The high-performance software multiplies the speed of the LastMinuteTravel.com Web site by ten-fold, reducing search times from eight to 10 seconds to less than one second.

Other upgrades make the site more user-friendly. For example, visitors now have the option of viewing hotel locations via an illustrated map or a satellite image of the area.

Using the “Hotel Map View,” visitors can scroll up and down or shift left and right to widen their search of properties in a given geographical area.

In what amounts to a technological first, visitors can now check room availability and book accommodations directly from the map or satellite image. No other travel Web site offers this advanced map feature.

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“With the introduction of these powerful software enhancements, we are one of the fastest web sites in the travel industry,” said Nathan Van Prooyen, LastMinuteTravel.com’s director of e-commerce. “When you are marketing to last-minute travelers, they don’t want to use precious time waiting for a travel search. By making it much easier and faster for visitors to shop for and book their travel, we are giving them more time to pack for their vacation.”

Along with the system upgrades, LastMinuteTravel.com recently added six new cruise lines to its portfolio of travel suppliers. Besides its existing relationship with Carnival Cruise Lines, the company now has agreements with Royal Caribbean International, Costa, Celebrity Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Lines & NCL America, Holland America and WindStar Cruises.

The upgrades to LastMinuteTravel.com have been more than a year in the making. Designed by Travel Global Systems (TGS), the technology subsidiary of Travel Holdings, the web site currently has a patent pending for the revolutionary inventory management system. ——-